Could it happen here? Preparing Your Farm for Disaster

This article is the first of a three-part series on making your farm or ranch resilient.

 When disaster strikes, we commonly hear people say, "I didn't think it would happen to us." Wildfires, floods, hurricanes, blizzards, ice storms, tornadoes, and other natural disasters are in the news every day. The odds are that someday, it WILL happen to us! It has happened to my Roots of Resilience colleagues in Eastern Washington State.

The first article in our series will outline what goes into a written disaster plan, as well as taking simple steps to protect your farm, family, and livestock. Being prepared will help to reduce stress, mitigate loss, and deal with the aftermath when such an event occurs. We will begin with some actions you can take before disaster strikes.

Disaster vs. Emergency

Many of these practices will hold true for both emergencies and disasters. What is the difference between the two? An emergency is when a crisis happens. For example, it could be personal, family, farm-wide, an accident, illness, or a barn fire. A disaster is when the emergency becomes so large that it exhausts the local resources in addressing it.  We will focus on disaster.

Step 1: Know what kind of disasters are possible where you live

You may live in a wildland fire prone area. If you live near a river, flooding may be a looming threat. Flash flooding could happen in many areas after heavy rainfall.

In the northern climates, you will deal with snow, blizzards, and dangerously low temperatures.  High winds can happen anywhere whether it is a simple storm, a hurricane, or tornado.

Chemical spills and train derailments can happen almost anywhere in the country.

Where I live on the “wet” side of Washington State, our concerns are flooding, wind, blowing snow, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and lahars (deadly mudflows in rivers after a volcanic eruption).  We don’t get a lot of snow but every few years we can get heavy snow and high winds making many roads impassable, thus creating difficulty in getting feed and water to the animals.

Know the lay of the land and which areas of your farm and  community that may be at risk.

Step 2: How much warning will you have?

In case of flooding, wind, hurricanes, and snow, we should have up to a few days to prepare.

A wildland fire may give you a few hours – or a few minutes. One time I was in a retreat center for a week of training. A trash burn got away from someone over a half mile away. Within minutes, a wall of fire was on top of us. Luckily, the venue was prepared, and we were safe. It was a sobering experience.

A tsunami or lahar has a warning of a few minutes to a hour or so.

An earthquake, tornado, or flash flood strikes usually without any warning at all.

When these events happen, every minute is critical. Being prepared for many possible scenarios may be the difference between life, death, and financial ruin.

Step 3: What can we do in each situation?

Shelter in Place

If you are caught in a storm, flood, or otherwise are cut off and you cannot evacuate, you may have to shelter in place.

Where will you shelter your family and your livestock? If the power is out, can you keep your family warm, your livestock sheltered, and be able to feed both? Having emergency food and supplemental feed for the animals will help you better be able to “weather” the storm. A clean and reliable water source is critical as well.

If the animals are sheltering in a barn, is there sufficient bedding?

Do you have a working generator with adequate fuel? Too often the generator sits with old fuel in it for a couple of years and won’t start when you need it. I have been there and done that. I am smarter now.

If there is any chance of flooding, have a critter pad. This is a high area for the livestock to gather and remain safe from the floods. If you know the flood is coming, put feed there for the animals before the flood waters arrive.

If things get bad and there is no time or no safe evacuation route, be prepared to cut the fences. Make sure your animals have some identification – ear tags at least. If you have only a few animals, you may have time to mark them with spray paint or a grease marker.

To reduce the chance of damage from fire, create a defensible space around your corals, barns, and home. Keep vegetation down by grazing or mowing. Do not plant trees withing 30-60 feet of buildings. Remove dead trees since these will burn easily. If you know that a fire may come your way, work up the ground with equipment so there will be less fuel to burn.

A metal roof is less likely to burn than a wood or shingle roof. These are more costly to install, but usually last longer and are more fire resistant.  Also have hoses and water available in case of spot fires.

Most importantly, your house or barn is not more valuable than your life. Too many people die every year because they stayed to protect their house.                             

Evacuate

If you can safely evacuate, do it! And don’t wait until the last moment. Material possessions are not worth dying for.

Before the disaster occurs, figure out how to evacuate yourself and your livestock. Do you have a trailer or do you know someone who does? And have multiple options of where you can evacuate to, depending upon the situation. This includes mapping out all possible escape routes, particularly if you are in a remote area where there may not be many roads.

Keep a full tank of fuel in your vehicles. I always fill up if the gauge approaches a half tank.

 Who will care for the animals once they are relocated? Where will the feed come from? If you have dairy cows, dairy goats, or dairy sheep, where can they be milked and who will do it? The specifics of hauling and caring for animals need to be discussed beforehand. Build relationships with the people who can help you. Have phone numbers readily available. Create a phone tree with your neighbors and practice it. Don’t wait until disaster strikes.

Summary

Know your potential threats and what you can do ahead of time to prepare. Minutes may mean the difference between life, death, and financial ruin.

Have a written plan and communicate it with family, employees, neighbors, and farm-sitters. If you are not home, they may not be able to contact you at the time to ask for instructions. Also, have an out-of-state contact. This is someone you can text in a disaster if the cell network is overloaded or landlines go down. An out-of-state text message is much more likely to go through than a local call. Instruct others to communicate with the out-of-state contact with updates.

In the next installment, we will look at what goes into a farm and home emergency kit and what tools and equipment to have ready and/or to bring with you.

Sandra Matheson, DVM